64 GAZ (military four-wheel drive vehicle): overview, specifications and reviews

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

April 17 is a significant date for every lover of Soviet cars. Exactly 75 years ago, the first experimental 64 GAZ was tested - a special car in the Soviet automobile industry. Despite the fact that, formally, the GA-61 was considered the very first and only SUV in the lineup, it was with the 64th model that the era of building Soviet-made all-wheel drive passenger cars for the masses began.

The history of this car is presented in a slightly wrong way. There are opinions of experts and historians that the model is a plagiarism of the Bantam BRC 40, but the Soviet 64 GAZ is in no way involved in this technique. A few years ago, historians managed to find information that helped to restore the most complete picture of the development and construction of this jeep.

Mythbusting

GAZ 61, which entered service in 1939, was planned as the main command vehicle. Expected that it would be adjustedrelease of many thousands of copies. But, something went wrong. In October 1940, the workshop where the GAZ-11 power units were assembled was transferred to the People's Commissariat of the Aviation Industry. So the Red Army was left without off-road vehicles and without GAZ trucks -63.

Those power units that remain will only be enough to support the production of T-40 reconnaissance tanks. I had to forget about cars for a while.

The problem was solved in an unexpected way. The main developer of off-road cars GAZ saw an article in a foreign magazine dedicated to automotive topics. So, the article said that Ford was designing Pygmy trucks, which were used by the US Army. Hence the refutation that 64 GAZ was built on the basis of Bantam models. The article said that the American plant did deliver 70 vehicles. But there is no more information about Bantam. The author of the article writes about the Ford Pigmy. The article even had a photo and technical specifications. It was this American SUV that served as a model, from which, as they said later, a copy was made - GAZ 64. Although how much this can be considered a copy is a moot point. The version of plagiarism from "Bantam" is completely baseless.

Designer GAZ became interested in both the model itself and the volume of deliveries for the US armies. The article mentioned a figure of 30,000 copies. This is a huge number. And in 1941, a letter came to the People's Commissariat of Medium Machine Building with a demand to assemble a prototype in the likeness of a model from the USA. And so the work began.

The car was equipped with a 42 hp 4-cylinder engine,all-wheel drive, wheelbase of 206 cm, as well as tires with increased cross-country ability.

Characteristic

The history of GAZ 64 cars officially began on February 9 in the experimental production workshop of the enterprise. It must be said that the specifications and requirements for the SUV could only be finalized on March 22, when the work was almost completed.

So, the total length of the SUV was supposed to be no more than 3100 mm, the length of the wheelbase - 2100 mm, the height of the hood - 970 mm. As for the mass, it was estimated at 1000 kg, while the carrying capacity was 200 kg. The body was designed for 4 people.

Packages

It was planned to create three configurations. So, a commander's version, reconnaissance, as well as a tractor for the needs of artillery were supposed.

For the command created the body of the chaise. It allowed for the installation of a radio station. For the needs of reconnaissance detachments, the same body was planned, however, at the same time, a swivel for machine guns was installed in the cabin. They wanted to make the tractor in the form of a pickup truck.

Meaning of unification

The development of the first domestic jeep was led by senior designer Grachev. He wanted all 64 GAZ units to be unified with other models as much as possible. This move then greatly facilitated the production of the "sixty-fourth".

So, the engine and gearbox were taken from MM, the transfer case from GAZ 61 was also used after minor modifications. Front axlewas also taken from the 61st, but it had to be slightly modified - the axle shafts and axle shaft covers were shortened.

The same improvements were made on the bridge from the GAZ-11. The rims were taken from GAZ M1, and the tires from GAZ A. A small part of the other units was taken from KIM-10.

Grachev decided to take the initiative and did not build pickup and phaeton bodies. Instead, a cart with cutouts was installed on the chassis, which served as doors. The first sample was not equipped with a soft convertible top.

First trials

During the test at the GAZ 64 test site, a military all-wheel drive vehicle, it performed well, but the assembly technology required some improvements. The car was disassembled, and the engineers analyzed the condition of the main components. It was concluded that the prototype is technologically complex. The release was suspended, the war began. Production was set up during the evacuation, and these jeeps were put into service and successfully used.

Design Features

So, this jeep was created on the basis of the GAZ-61, but had a shortened base. The difference in length was 755 mm - due to this, all-wheel drive cars were able to increase their maneuverability and maneuverability. The short wheelbase allowed engineers to get away from the use of an intermediate cardan shaft, which had some difficulties.

The power unit from MM had to be slightly modified. The motor was raised due to the high spars, while the center of gravity shiftedgo ahead.

Flaws

The Soviet all-wheel drive car GAZ 64 had certain drawbacks. The military complained about its design when they tested a test sample at the test site - what they just didn’t do with it. When they decided to check if the jeep could swim, the toy was taken away from them, and for that they wrote a devastating verdict.

The main drawback is the design of the front suspension, which affected the cross-country ability. The problem lay in the very hard sheets from which the springs were made - this caused breakdowns. This design also had advantages - powerful fingers were installed at the ends of the spring pack, which were distinguished by high wear resistance.

Further, the military did not like galloping when driving off-road. This feature was the reason that the SUV was nicknamed "goat". This effect was caused by a short wheelbase, as well as incorrect shock absorbers. When all this was fixed, the car stopped "goating".

As for the power part, the operation of the engine, gearbox, transfer case, cardan gears was trouble-free. Even with low-quality fuel, the engine produced nameplate power.

Production

In early August 1941, the first batch of SUVs began to roll off the assembly line. By the end of the year, about 600 more copies were produced. Also, the BA-64 armored cars were produced on the chassis of the “sixty-fourth”. Finished producing these unique military vehicles in '43.

Collectible value

Now these cars are very raremeet. On the roads you can often see the GAZ 69 than the GAZ 64. The price of a jeep today is about 500,000 rubles, depending on the condition. Collectors are very expensive to restore the original appearance - there are great difficulties in finding and buying original spare parts and assemblies, design details.

Small copies of these cars are popular. You can buy them in stores - they are exactly the same as the original car.

Here he is, the Soviet "Pygmy" or the first domestic jeep SUV, the progenitor of modern all-wheel drive vehicles. And you can see it live in automobile museums or in personal collections.